


A Simple Game of Chess

by elliseleven



Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series
Genre: Chess!Luke, Curious Village Spoilers, Gen, Layton's Mystery Journey Spoilers, Post-Layton's Mystery Journey, specifically the anime
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-18 11:28:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29982171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elliseleven/pseuds/elliseleven
Summary: Flora gets a surprise phone call from an old friend, and they decide to meet up after all these years for a chess game.
Relationships: Flora Reinhold & Luke Triton
Comments: 5
Kudos: 5





	A Simple Game of Chess

**Author's Note:**

  * For [floralcurtains](https://archiveofourown.org/users/floralcurtains/gifts).



> ty to my friend fizz for coming up with the concept of chess!luke and also helping me a bit with writing this fic!!
> 
> also this took months to write, so you better enjoy it (jk)

Flora was sitting on the sofa when the phone rang. These days, she was usually the one to get to the phone first. Kat and Al were visiting more often now, but they were more often than not upstairs when they were. Hershel would usually jump up to get it, but Flora wouldn’t let him. Not after what had happened only a few months ago. She’d barely convinced him to stay at home and get some rest.

She quickly jumped up as she saw Hershel try to stand up beside her.

“Don’t worry, Papa. I’ll get it.”

Hershel sighed in defeat. “Alright, dear.”

She gave her father a quick smile before she rushed to the phone.

“Hello?”

There was a beat of silence then a very familiar voice came through the receiver. “Flora. Long time no see.”

Her mouth fell open. She couldn’t believe it was him. “Luke! Oh my gosh, are you okay?!”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I’m mostly fine. Marina and I decided to move back to England just so I could be closer to you all. We’ve only just got settled in.”

“Oh, that’s great!” Flora could hardly believe her ears. She had no idea that Luke had moved back to England. She wondered if Hershel knew. “It would be lovely to see you again.”

“Of course! Actually, that was why I was calling. I wondered if you were free to meet up sometime for a chat?”

“Yes!”

Luke giggled. “Did you really miss me that much?”

“Are you kidding?! You were missing for _eleven_ years! Of course I did!”

“Oh… yeah, that.” Luke laughed awkwardly.

Flora waited for him to continue, but he didn't. Luke didn’t know how to talk about the ordeal that he and the professor went through, especially since Hershel was pretending like it had never happened. His parents and wife had tried to get him to open up, but they hadn’t had any success yet.

“So, um… How’s Marina?” Flora picked up the conversation quickly, sensing that Luke didn’t want to talk about that subject.

“Oh yeah, she’s fine,” Luke mumbled. He was still thinking about all that time he had wasted trapped in the cryochamber. Marina was now a full eleven years older than when he last saw her, but he hadn’t aged at all. She said it didn’t bother her, but he didn’t quite believe her.

Flora doubted that she would get any more out of him, so she cut to the reason Luke had called. “Hey, aren’t you gonna invite me out or are we just gonna talk all day?”

That seemed to snap Luke out of his thoughts. “Oh, yeah! Sorry, I totally forgot. I wanted to go to that park we used to go to with the professor. It isn’t far from where you live. Remember it?”

“Of course,” Flora smiled. “We used to go there a lot for chess lessons. Do you still play?”

“Kind of. I wanted us to play together actually. I kinda miss it, and you, actually.” He was glad that Flora couldn’t see him blushing right now.

She giggled. “Aw, that’s cute. Yeah, we can go!”

“Great! We can meet up in an hour, maybe? I have some stuff I need to take care of first.”

“Alright. See you later, Luke,” Flora smiled.

“See you, Flora.”

Luke hung up the phone, and Flora put the phone back on the table with a smile. It was always nice to talk to Luke, especially after he’d been missing for so long. She was so relieved when Kat and her friends had found the professor and Luke again.

“Professor?” Flora called as she made her way into the living room. “I just spoke to Luke, and we’re going to meet at that park you always took us to! He moved back to England recently. I don't know if you knew.”

Hershel sat up, a grin on his face. “Yes, I spoke to Clark and Brenda only a week ago about Luke returning. That sounds wonderful! I’ll admit, I did overhear some of your conversation, but that’s still great news. I hope you two have fun.”

“Thanks,” Flora smiled. “I’m sure we will. Luke would love to see you too, but you still need to rest.” 

He hadn’t made to get up just yet, but Flora knew it would only be a matter of time before he would try to join her.

Hershel sighed in defeat. It was as if she had read his mind. "I suppose you are right. Perhaps he can join us for some tea later."

"Yeah, that would be great!"

After that brief discussion, Flora went upstairs to get ready and wait out the time before she would need to leave the house. It had been so long since she’d last seen Luke that she was almost worried about it. What if they couldn’t strike up a conversation?

She sighed to try and dispel the worries. Their phone conversation went well, despite Luke not wanting to talk about some things, so she shouldn’t worry.

 _It’s all going to be fine,_ she told herself. She hoped she was right.

\- - -

The park that Luke mentioned was very close to Hershel and Flora’s house, so she could easily walk there. She didn’t mind driving, but she always preferred to walk. She never got tired at taking in the sights of London.

Luke told her to make her way to the square in the centre of the park. Once she got there, she immediately knew why he mentioned this specific place. This was the place where Hershel took both of them to learn chess. There were four sets of tables and chairs where people would set up chess boards to play. She had fond memories of this place.

Soon enough, she saw a man dressed in blue walk onto the square from the opposite side. She almost didn’t recognise him.

“Hi, Luke!” Flora waved, beaming.

Luke waved back with a smile. She noticed that he was wearing a satchel. It wouldn’t surprise her if it was the same as the one he carried around years ago on their adventures. From this far away, she couldn’t tell of its condition, but she bet that it was the same satchel.

They joined each other in the middle of the square.

“It’s lovely to see you again, Flora,” Luke smiled, tipping the brim of his hat just like Hershel did.

She wasn’t sure if it was the shock of seeing Luke after so long or the relief that they talked just like they used so, but Flora suddenly began to cry.

She laughed through her tears. “S- sorry, I don’t know what’s come over me. It’s just… great to see you.”

“Aw, Flora, don’t be like that!” 

Luke pulled Flora into a hug, and they stayed like that until Flora had calmed down.

Flora was the first to pull away, and she dried her tears on her sleeves. “Sorry,” she repeated.

“It’s okay, really."

There was an awkward silence that spread between them which began to worry Flora until Luke spoke again. 

“Well, you haven’t changed a bit! In a good way, of course,” he added with a smile. The two of them teased each other as children, but he thought that wouldn't be a good idea, considering Flora had only just stopped crying.

Thankfully, she took this comment lightly. She knew Luke would never be mean to her.

She giggled. “Thank you. I wish I could say the same for you. I only just recognised you when you walked over!”

He grinned sheepishly. “Oh, well, I guess I have changed a bit.”

“More than a bit! Although it seems you haven’t grown much since we last saw each other,” she winked.

“Hey! I’ll have you know I’m the same height as the professor now!” He was slightly offended at the jab to his height, but he was mostly relieved that Flora was back to her old self again.

She couldn’t help but laugh. It seemed Luke was still the same flustered boy she met all those years ago. “That’s not much to brag about.”

Luke huffed, folding his arms. He made a show of looking down at Flora’s shoes and on the ground. It was if he was looking for an excuse to call Flora short.

Flora watched him do so with a smirk. She didn’t do it often, but it was fun to tease Luke. It reminded her of different times.

Luke sighed when he didn't think up of a comeback. “Anyway, we’re not here to talk about my height.”

“Of course. I’m sorry, did I go too far?” Flora was expecting Luke to laugh it off, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

Luke managed a smile. “No, it’s fine. The past few weeks have just been… stressful. But that doesn’t mean I’m not happy to see you!”

Flora tried to hide her guilt. She didn’t mean to hurt him. “Of course… Let’s change the subject. Shall we set up a game?”

That seemed to cheer him up. “Yes!”

Since it was a weekday, the park wasn’t very busy so it was easy to find a free table. Flora, still feeling bad about earlier, let Luke choose his side first.

They spent the next few minutes in silence while they played. Flora was noticing that Luke was slow to move his next piece. 

It surprised her since he used to be very quick, sometimes even quicker than the professor. But she realised he had been missing for eleven years, so of course, he might be a little rusty.

She decided not to bring it up and instead talk about something else.

“So, how’s Marina?” She asked again as she moved her pawn to H4 to take one of Luke's pawns. She was hoping that now he was distracted from his thoughts, she would get more of an answer out of him. She heard him sigh in defeat then he answered.

“Oh, she’s alright,” Luke said, one hand under his chin. “I think she would’ve preferred to stay in America, but she told me she was okay with moving here. At least that’s what she tells me.”

He took out one of Flora's pawns with a smirk, but she could tell he wasn't fully into the game.

Flora bet that Marina was just as worried about him as she was, if not more. 

“Well, it’s very admirable of her to move all the way here for you,” she smiled, moving one of her knights to E6.

Luke looked up at her, smiling. A slight blush crept up his cheeks. “Yeah. I guess so.” 

They fell silent for a while and continued to play. Luke glanced at his remaining pieces and was surprised to see that he had less than Flora. He had, of course, realised she was taking his pieces away, but he hadn't realised how many. He silently scolded himself for not paying more attention.

She noticed his change in expression and smirked. "I'm guessing you haven't played chess much since you moved away, eh?"

As soon as she'd said it, she wished she hadn't. Hadn't she just told herself that Luke would have less experience now?

Luke shook his head. "Not really. Besides, you've had eleven years more practice."

"Oh… Of course. Sorry." She trailed off, embarrassed. Maybe she was just used to how they used to tease and joke with each other that she'd forgotten that this wasn't the right time at all.

"It's okay," Luke smiled. "I know you didn't mean it."

Flora nodded, but she could tell he was hurt.

The conversation trailed off again as they both concentrated on their moves. Luke grinned as he took away one of Flora's pieces, but he was well aware that he was losing.

"So," Luke began again, "How is the professor?"

Flora smiled at his question. She had begun to worry that he wouldn't talk to her again. "He's doing fine, don't worry. He wanted to invite you over after we're done here, in fact."

Luke's eyes lit up at that. "I'd be happy to visit! Will Alfendi and Katrielle be there too?"

Flora shrugged. "I don't know. Al and Papa don't get on well, so I doubt Al will come over. Kat might though. She's busy working at her detective agency, but it's close by where we live."

Luke nodded along. He had been told about all this since returning to society, but it still shocked him how much has changed. The last time he had seen Katrielle was when she was 10 years old.

"Then again," Flora muttered, her hand on her chin. Both of them seemed to have forgotten about the chess game, "Kat could probably convince Al to visit. She's the only one in our family who he'll listen to these days. I'm sure he'd want to meet you anyway."

Luke frowned. "Why doesn't he listen to you?"

"I don't know. Maybe because I'm too similar to Papa. That and I'm old," she laughed. "Or older than him anyhow."

Luke sat up in surprise. "I don't think you're old!"

Flora giggled at his outburst. "Always the gentleman."

"I wonder if I could ever get Marina to visit all of you," Luke mused. He seemed to be in his own little world. It reminded Flora of when he was younger. "It would be wonderful for you all to meet her. She's still getting settled in England, however, so it might take some time."

Flora nodded. She fully understood what it felt like to move somewhere that was completely new. She had moved from the little village of St Mystere all the way to London after all.

She was about to respond when Luke started laughing. It surprised her since he had seemed sad ever since she'd brought up the topic of his disappearance.

"What?" She asked, not being able to help smiling in return. His laugh was adorable.

"We totally forgot about the game!"

"Oh!" Flora suddenly remembered. "It seems we have!"

She surveyed the board to see that she still had most of her pieces left whereas Luke only had his bishops, knights, queen and king left.

Luke was looking too, but he didn't seem to mind anymore. Besides, the point of them coming here was to catch up, not play a game of chess, really. The chess game was only there to have something to do if the conversation ran dry.

"Alright," Luke clapped his hands together, softly, "let's finish up this game and then we can go back to yours."

"Yes, of course!" Flora grinned. "I'll make sure to call Kat as soon as we're back, so she can hopefully join us on her break. Who knows? Maybe she'll persuade Al to come too."

"Sounds fantastic."

They finished up the game quickly. Flora even let Luke take a couple of her pieces. Of course, he knew she was letting her since he knew how smart she was. He played along anyway just to make her feel better, which is just what she was doing.

In the end, Flora won the match. Back when they were kids, she would rub her victory in his face, but there was none of that now.

"Congratulations, Flora."

"Thanks, Luke."

They ended with a handshake across the table. After they stood up and arranged the table back to how they found it, they both started to make their way out of the park.

Luke shouldered his satchel and turned to Flora with a smirk. "I knew you were letting me win, you know."

"Oh, really?" Flora asked, trying to hide her smile.

"Yeah. Um, thanks for that. I did kind of feel disheartened after you were beating me so easily."

Flora sighed. She didn't realised he was  _ that  _ affected by it. "Well, maybe you just need some lessons from a professional!"

"From you then?"

Flora laughed, louder than she should've. "No, of course not! I meant the professor. I'm sure he'd love to teach you again."

"It'll just be like the old days, I suppose."

"Yeah…"

As the two of them walked out onto the pavement and back towards the professor's house, Flora realised that there had been nothing to worry about. 

Yes, her and Luke had changed a lot these past years, but they had gone through too much together for it to fade away so easily. Their bond, much like the professor's chess winning streak, would never be broken.


End file.
